The Internet of Things (IoT) has become an essential component of our daily lives, from connected vehicles, to smart appliances for the Smart Home, home automation, DIY projects, Industry 4.0, and much more. And to respond to this new paradigm, the important thing is to look for the best development boards to be able to carry out our projects, since makers do not always have the possibilities to create their own PCBs and ASICs with which to create their projects, but they have You have to use this type of programmable boards for this.
These boards, also known as prototyping boards, are hardware platforms that allow developers to experiment, test, and ultimately implement their ideas. In 2024, the variety of these plates is wider than ever, and that is why we want to make it very easy for you here, showing you a list with some of the best that exist in 2024 and that might interest you for your future projects...
Arduino UNO rev3
For more information, read this article dedicated to this MCU-based development board.
Raspberry Pi 5
More information, read this article dedicated to this SBC.
ESP32
More information about this ESP32 here.
ESP8266
More information in this article about this module.
Teensy 4.0
El Teensy 4.0 It is one of the fastest microcontrollers on the market, capable of running at 600 MHz and consuming around 100 mA in the process. It stands out for its ability to dynamically change the clock speed, it can even be overclocked beyond 600 MHz. Unlike other microcontrollers, the Teensy 4.0 can change the CPU speed without affecting baud rates and other functions. In addition, it has a power off function and a Real Time Clock (RTC) that can track the date and time even when the power is off. As for the advantages, speed is certainly the main one, as it can run code more than five times faster than the Teensy 3.6 and fifteen times faster than the Teensy 3.2. However, it costs a little more than the Teensy 3.2. That makes it a good choice for IoT projects like audio synthesis and analysis.
Particle Boron
Furthermore, the Particle Boron is a development board that allows you to connect a mesh network through a mobile data service. It can act as a standalone cellular endpoint or a 4G LTE-enabled gateway for mesh networks. One of the main advantages of the Particle Boron over the Particle Electron is that the Borons can communicate with each other over WiFi and then pass the information to a central station that is far away over a mobile data network. However, a big disadvantage of going from Particle Electron to Particle Boron would be the loss of surface mountability. The Particle Boron is a good choice as a gateway to link an entire group of local endpoints where Wi-Fi is unavailable or unreliable.
Nvidia Jetson Nano
More information in this article dedicated to this board designed for AI projects.
BeagleV
La BeagleV by BeagleBoard is a revolutionary open source development board based on the RISC-V architecture. This board, built around the Alibaba TH1520 SoC (System on a Chip), stands out for its high performance. Like the BeagleBone Black, the BeagleV features the same P8 and P9 header pins, allowing you to expand its capabilities by adding your favorite BeagleBone expansion boards.
It is designed to be an affordable, pocket-enabled SBC. for RISC-V, ideal for those who wish to explore the new ISA in depth. Featuring a powerful quad-core RISC-V processor, the BeagleV offers a clock speed of 1.85GHz, a 4 TOPS NPU, support for 64-bit DDR, and audio processing using a single C906 core. In addition, it has a variety of peripherals, such as two 480 Mbps USB ports, three digital audio interfaces, three CAN buses, and multiple serial interfaces.
android
ODROID It is a series of SBCs similar to Raspberry Pi, as alternatives to them and that were designed for Android systems, hence its name Open anDROID. However, over time they have accepted more Linux distributions. In many ways, they are superior to the original Pi, which makes them much loved. For example, they have a more powerful CPU, more RAM, etc. This allows for superior performance to process heavier software more quickly than the original Pi. However, they do not have the same software and community support as the Raspberry Pi, but the truth is that there are more and more followers and information that you find on the Internet.
Regarding ODROID projects, there is a large number of projects in which you can work with the plates of this brand. From building digital photo frames and environmental sensors for gaming machines to creating an entertainment system and gaming kits, ODROID boards are useful for many fun projects.
Odoo X86 Ultra
La UDOO X86 ULTRA is a powerful x86 development board and an Arduino 101 compatible platform, combined on a single board. This board is ten times more powerful than a Raspberry Pi 3 and can run most applications that would normally run on a PC, plus some 3D games. It supports Linux, Android and Windows 10, and has up to 8GB of dual-channel RAM, a 2.56 GHz CPU with a 64-bit Quad core processor, three simultaneous screens, WiFi and Bluetooth 4.0.
Between its advantages, highlights its enormous processing power, much higher than that of most SBCs. Despite having a small community, it is quite useful and has several good quality guides. The UDOO X86 ULTRA is quiet and energy efficient, easy to configure, has good GPIO support and large storage capacity; It comes with 32GB of eMMC. It also has great wired connectivity and great potential for media streaming. Among its disadvantages, its high price for an SBC and its poor wireless connectivity stand out. Additionally, it cannot run demanding games.
As for UDOO X86 ULTRA projects, you can work on projects such as modernization of classic electronic elements, such as a vintage radio; creating an ambient light system; or even creating an upgraded guitar with the UDOO X86 ULTRA, which has built-in MIDI and FX controls.